First off, I didn't get changed!!! Finally! I've almost never been in a sector more than 2 changes. It'll be nice being able to stay in my favorite sector here in the jungle for at least a little bit longer =). I'm still here with my little peruvian son Elder Poma and things are going well. 

Again we were in Quito most of the week and we didn't work much in the sector. But we've been able to see miracles. We've been able to find some great people to teach and I'm really excited for them. That's most of the reason that I wanted to stay. I really want to see them get baptized and I'm sure that some will. Most of them are from Crecimento Real as well. It's going to be awesome!

And Dad, to answer your question, "CURIOUS, Have you guys come to like some food that you never thought you would?". Yes, yes I have. I now like fish, soup, and plantain. Those are the big ones =). I've also grown to like bread a lot more. Here there are a lot of different kinds of bread and there are bakeries everywhere. 

Funny thing of the week: So, for those of you who didn't know, my birthday was this week. Guess what I did.....That's right! I was in the bus traveling to Quito all day! Yeah!!!....So boring lol. Happy Birthday 

Elder Black

Well, not much time to write and not much to write as I was in Quito all week again =). Unfortunately Orlando did not get baptized this week....I guess he started working and he works everyday including sundays. That's why he didn't get baptized. We also don't have anybody with baptismal date...On the other hand we had 5 new investigators show up to church out of nowhere. Awesome! We got appointments with them for this week and we're pretty excited =). We also have an appointment with a really good potential investigator tonight. I'll tell you about her in the "Funny thing of the week".

Funny thing of the week: So this monday Elder Poma and I were walking to the terminal with my little suitcase and his bag of clothes. I was going to Quito and he was going to be staying with the other missionaries during the week. We were walking along and I heard someone behind us hiss (that's how they try to get your attention here...). Normally I don't pay attention to the people who hiss because I'm well, not a snake. But this time I did and it was a lady. She motioned for us to go over to her; we did and she started to talk to us. She started telling us that she had heard from the sister missionaries awhile back, then she offered to take us to the terminal. We had to tell her "no" because we couldn't get into the car with just her there. Since she couldn't take us she tried to give us $2.00 so we could take a taxi. We tried to refuse but she wouldn't allow it....Okay, thanks. Then she started teaching us. She said she believes in the gift of tongues, and profecies and dreams. She even told us that she had seen an angel (fyi, I don't believe she's crazy). Then she tried to give us $10.00 so we could buy something nice to eat for the trip. We really tried to refuse this time. She said, "Don't you take offerings?". No we do not take ANY money...."Haven't you ever heard of a love offering?"....Uhh....no? lol. She said that you reap what you sow and she wanted blessings for helping missionaries. We were forced to take the money (darn lol). Then she went on to say that we're princes and pearls of great price for being missionaries and preaching the gospel. Then she offered a prayer to end......Uhh... I was really confused afterwards, but she gave us her number and we got an appointment for today. She really wants us to visit her. I'm kind of excited to see how it goes =). 

Pics: the parrot thing is something that Diana (the one I just recently baptized) gave to me. It's super awesome! It's about 8 inches tall and she wrote on it (the translation), "Elder Black, Thank you for being an instrument of God, for coming into my life and opening the door to eternal happiness". Awe.....=). She's awesome. The other picture is with Hermano Alvarado. He is literally a clown and is the 2nd councelor in the branch presidency

Whew! This week we did do a lot. We taught a bunch of lessons, found new investigators, and have people with baptismal date. A bunch of stuff. So Orlando did not get baptized this week. I guess his baptism will be for this saturday. Don't worry, he's doing good though =).

I don't know if you remember, but a while back we were teaching a guy named Henry. Well, after about a month we finally visited him again. He's still living with Keli (an inactive 15 year old member...) and he told us that in 2 weeks he'll be going into the military. It was possible that he could have gotten baptized, but on friday we visited him and told us that he was informed wrong, that he'd be going into the military tomorrow, or last saturday. Okay then....lol. So he went to the military. But the good thing is that Keli will finally stop living with him and she can keep the lay of chastity!

We also found a great investigator this week. Her name is Alejandra, she's Pedro Heredia's girlfriend. They're not married, but they want to. Before, Alejandra didn't want anything to do with the church, but now she even wants to get baptized! Nice. She's really good though.

Then here's something cool that happened. So there's this tribe here that wants the missionaries to go and visit them. A while back the missionaries tried to visit them but it didn't work out for some reason. But I guess they want us to go and teach them =). They live about 2 hours away from here and they used to walk around naked and kill people. Now they put clothes on and they only kill people sometimes. Once they killed 2 catholic missionaries, but that's because they weren't invited there and they went unexpected. But we've got a connection with the chief =). Not sure how it'll work out or anything. I think it would be awesome to teach an entire tribe!

That's all for now. I'll be going to Quito this week and the week after as well, so not much should be happening...

Funny thing of the week: So last week I bought some yogurt. It was fine and everything and then I pulled it out this morning to eat some. I noticed that some yogurt was leaking out of the bottle into the fridge. I felt the bottle and noticed that it was hard and inflated. Knowing that it was pressurized I aimed the bottle at the kitchen sink and slowly unscrewed the lid; some air came out. Then, suddenly it exploded and shot out of my hands and onto the floor like a rocket. I guess the yogurt had fermented or something and the pressure built up a bunch. It was pretty funny because it got yogurt all over the wall and it kind of scared me since it blew up =)

See ya!

Elder Black

This past week was alright. Meh...It was all thanks to Carnaval...It's a holiday here and everyone here goes to the river or out of town, as a result, lots of fallen appointments =). Hoorah! The good part is that we were still able to do some good stuff. We found a few promising new investigators who did not attend because of STUPID CARNAVAL!! Hrm... anyways...I'll skip all the bad stuff and just talk about the good stuff that happened. 

So we've been working on a less active convert named Patricia. She's 12 and was baptized about 4 months ago; in all my time here I have not seen her in church. We've been trying to get her to go and nothing....Then, this week we taught her parents who almost got baptized awhile back. They need to get married but we're going to try and help them with that. So we taught them on Saturday night and they weren't so committed to go to church on sunday. They didn't even want to commit to go 1 hour. But on sunday they (parents, Patricia and her little brother) all showed up to church and stayed all 4 hours! Nice =). It was awesome to see them there. 

We will also be having a baptism this week. His name is Orlando. We've been teaching him for a while and he kept saying that he wanted to know more and he wasn't ready to get baptized, but then on saturday he went to the baptism of a family that the other missionaries were teaching and then he said he was ready to get baptized. Awesome! So out of nowhere we'll be having a baptism this week =). 

Also, there was a cool experience that I had this week. So, this week was supposed to be the leaders meeting in Quito. I was going to travel to Lago Agrio on sunday night to be able to travel on monday morning with the other zone leader Elder Coram. Me and my companion got to the terminal at 7:30 to be able to meet up with the other missionaries to leave my companion with them and pick up a couple of things that I needed to take to Quito. We waited there for awhile and they got there at around 8:05. They gave me the papers that I needed, they left and I went to go grab my bus. The last bus left at 8:00 and I missed it....Luckily there was another bus going to Quito that passed by Lago Agrio at 9:00. But it would get there at around 10:30 and I needed to get permission to take a bus so late at night. So I called President and he told me that we would not be having the meeting and that we should not go to Quito. So, abandoned in the terminal I went back to the missionaries house in taxi where I waited for them to get home....So, what's the cool part of this. If the missionaries wouldn't have gotten late to the terminal I wouldn't have missed my bus, I wouldn't have called President to get permission to go late, and me and Elder Coram would have gone all the way to Quito without knowing just to come right back to Coca. The Lord takes care of his missionaries =)

Funny thing of the week: So this week I had to do a baptismal interview for a half deaf guy in a room that has a metal roof during a rainstorm...It was really noisy in during the interview and I could barely hear. He was talking softly and the rain was really pounding down on the roof. From what I could hear the interview was going well and then we got to question 4, the part about if he had commited a serious crime. Right then the rain came down harder and he went on talking. I tried really hard to listen but I could hardly hear anything. Then, as he was ending his story the only thing I could make out was, ".....so that was the worst sin I've commited...". Uhh.....darn it...Uhhhhhhh........."So you haven't any problems with the law or anything?". "No. Never". Okay good lol. It was funny. It was literally the only thing I could hear. Although I couldn't really tell what he was saying I could tell that he didn't have any problems. =)

Pics

1. Baptism of the other missionaries, Familia Guaman (4). They're so awesome =)

2. Orlando, Elder Poma and I at the baptism. 

3. Awesome cooked cinnamon apple french toast I made this morning. It was just as good as it looks =). I was so proud for making it =)

4. BMX show that we saw before coming to right today =). The close up is a member named Pedro Heredia who happens to be Diana's brother (Diana's the one that got baptized a couple weeks ago)